


No Strings

by hargrovemax



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Enemies to Lovers, Eventual Smut, Friends With Benefits, M/M, Rivalry, Tumblr: scorbusfest
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-28
Updated: 2019-08-24
Packaged: 2020-07-25 02:49:41
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 7,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20018593
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hargrovemax/pseuds/hargrovemax
Summary: Out of every single person in the class, she had to pick Scorpius Malfoy, the one person that the whole school knew he hated. He groaned again and buried his head in his hands. This was going to be a long two months.





	1. Chapter 1

Albus had probably never met anyone as infuriating as Scorpius Malfoy. 

It was a chilly November morning, and they had just gotten their Potions marks back. Of course, Scorpius did not hesitate to keep mouthing “Ninety-seven percent” every time Albus turned around. He was this close to pulling his hair out. It was clearly evident that Malfoy had gotten under his skin because next to Albus, his cousin Rose quirked an eyebrow at him. “Is there a reason your face is red or is that just normal?” she said, smirking, and Albus shoved her playfully. 

“Malfoy’s being a prick, is all,” he murmured under his breath, crumpling his test up and ramming it into his backpack. 

“You’re probably the only person I know who’d be upset with a 95%,” she said, laughing. “Other than me, of course.” 

Albus rolled his eyes. “I’m not mad about it,” he said, crossing his arms. “I just can’t believe Scorpius did better than me.” Though, Albus knew if the roles had been reversed he would have been just obnoxious about it. Who could have blamed him? Their petty little feud had been going on longer than they could remember. Not that he was complaining about it. Any class with Scorpius gave him a strange rush of excitement, and he was pretty sure he did way better in those classes than any other. 

Rose was about to shoot back with another clever comment but Professor Gill cleared her throat at the front of the class, cueing everyone to settle into silence. 

“As we’re nearing the end of the semester, I thought I’d give you a big final project to do.   
“You’ll be doing a research project about any famous potioneer you’d like, in partners.” There was a hush of excitement, dying down as the professor narrowed her eyes. “Partners I’ll be putting you into.” A collective sigh rippled through the class. 

Professor Gill pulled out a scroll and unravelled it. “I better not have any trouble with these,” she said, with her signature stony look.

“Rose Weasley, Chase Zabini,” Albus saw his cousin perk up in her seat.  
“Alyson Huang, Jeffrey Thomas,”   
“Scorpius Malfoy, Albus Potter.”

Albus blinked. He had to have heard that wrong. He turned to look at Rose , and realised with dismay that he’d heard correctly because his cousin was silently cackling beside him. He twisted in his seat to look at Malfoy, who was sitting with his arms crossed, lip curled the way it did when he was annoyed. Albus knew, he was the reason for that curl more times than not.

He leaned his head back in his seat and groaned. The professor shot him a look, and he quickly straightened up. Stupid Professor Gill really had it out for him. Out of every single person in the class, she had to pick Scorpius Malfoy, the one person that the whole school knew he hated. He groaned again and buried his head in his hands. This was going to be a long two months.

…

When the bell rang, Rose was all too happy to waltz out of class with her new partner. Why couldn’t he have gotten a partner that was attractive enough to be a supermodel? Though… he shot a quick glance at Scorpius, then realized what he was doing and shook his head. That was probably the weirdest thought he’d had. He quickly pushed his books into his bag and headed towards the door when he felt a tap on his shoulder. 

“Potter. We need to talk.”

Albus turned around exasperated. “You here to gloat about your ninety-seven percent again, Malfoy?” he said. 

Scorpius smiled smugly. “I would, but I think you’ve had enough for today,” he shoved his hands in his pockets, “No, I actually wanted to talk about this project thing. I know we hate each other, but I’m not trying to fail Potions this semester.” He tilted his head. “So, can we at least agree to be civil until we’re done? Because we both know we’re not getting any work done if we keep doing this.”

Scorpius had a strange, serious look in his eyes, one that Albus had never noticed before. He didn’t know baby blue eyes could ever even look that serious, but somehow-

“Well? Are you just going to stand there, gaping?” 

Albus shook his head, snapping out of his daze. Shit. Was he staring? He nodded hastily. “Yeah, yeah, we should. I don’t want to fail this either.” 

Scorpius smiled, and for the first time, it wasn’t snarkily. “Good.” He headed towards the door, then turned around. “And just so you know, ninety-five percent isn’t that bad. I mean, a little sad, but we can work with it,” he said, grinning.

Albus turned to finish putting his stuff away. “Oh, sod off, Malfoy,” he said, but he couldn’t help himself from laughing. 

…

Later that night, Albus found himself standing in the middle of the Slytherin common room, surrounded by a bunch of partying students. Of course. Slytherin had just won the Quidditch season. Albus didn’t keep up with Quidditch, mainly because he was trying to be least like his father as possible. The green eyes and messy dark hair were enough to get him called ‘Harry’ by every single professor for his first couple years at Hogwarts. Since then, he did everything in his power to distance himself from being the spitting image of the great Harry Potter. Not that he had any interest in Quidditch anyway. 

However, the one thing he did like about these parties was the amount of free booze there was just lying around, so he grabbed a bottle of wine and headed outside to drink and look at the stars. Sad? A little, but he preferred it to the boisterous music and the hundreds of bodies swaying on their makeshift dancefloor. 

He stepped outside into the little patio outside the Slytherin common room, a tiny balcony-like structure that looked out into the lake. He was fully ready to spend his night there, but then he noticed a figure already standing there, looking out over the balcony. 

Could he not be free of Malfoy for one day? 

The other boy turned around when he heard Albus enter, and raised an eyebrow. “Exactly how long have you been standing there staring at me?” he asked.

“I-” Albus began, flustered, then shook his head. “Never mind. What are you doing here?”

“What are YOU doing here?” he shot back.

“I asked you first.”

“I asked you second.”

“Malfoy.”

“Fine. The loud music gives me a headache. Out here is much better.”

Albus stepped towards the balcony, standing beside him and looking out into the night. It really was beautiful, the way the moonlight bathed the grounds in an iridescent glow, and the sprinkling of stars in the sky reflected on the rippling waters of the lake. 

“Same, actually. I hate those parties.”

Scorpius turned to face him. “I guess we have one thing in common,” he said, smiling. He’d been smiling an awful lot recently, Albus noticed, and it was strange to him. He was so used to pouty, snarky Malfoy that this gentler version that only appeared today was warming to him.   
“Two, actually,” Scorpius said, grabbing the wine bottle from his hand. He took a huge chug, then snorted when he noticed the questioning look on Albus’s face. “Hey, if you’re going to be staying out here, you better be willing to share some of that.” Albus rolled his eyes and took the bottle back, taking a sip for himself.

Under any other circumstance, Albus definitely wouldn’t have spent a night out here with Malfoy of all people. But tonight, he must have been drunk on the moonlight as well, because Scorpius’s company wasn’t the worst. They talked occasionally, but the best part was the silence. Silence had never felt so good than it had that night, standing next to Malfoy with their shoulders pressed together, looking at the stars. It was comfortable.

“That’s Scorpius,” Malfoy said suddenly, pointing at the sky. 

Albus turned to him. “Well, you’ve had everyone fooled for years. Imagine me thinking YOU were called Scorpius,”

Malfoy glared at him. “I can’t tell if the wine is making you dumber or if you’ve always been like this.” he looked back up into the sky. “That’s Scorpius, the constellation. You know, how my family has this whole thing with being named after celestial beings.” he mused.

Albus smiled. “Beats being named after two dead men.” 

He heard Scorpius chuckle next to him. “Two GREAT dead men, that is.”

“Spare me, I hear enough about them.”

He heard a soft chuckle, then they lapsed back into their comfortable silence, taking occasional sips from the bottle. He didn’t know how long they’d been passing that bottle back and forth, but soon enough it was empty, and Albus watched as Scorpius let the last bit drip onto his outstretched tongue. 

Albus shook his head in mock disgust then noticed, alarmedly, that they were much closer than when the night began. Their feet were only a few inches apart and their eyes close enough that Albus could have counted his eyelashes. Not that he was, of course. It was only from this close that he really noticed for the first time how short Scorpius was. The other boy only barely reached up to Albus’s shoulders. He was so small that it was a little cute.

Yeah, the wine must have gotten to his head, because we clearly weren’t thinking straight. He shook that last thought from his mind.

“The wine’s over,” Scorpius said softly, his lips barely parted. He rested the empty bottle on the ledge.

“Yeah, I guess we finished-”

And suddenly Scorpius was leaning upwards and his lips were on Albus’s. It was a hot, searing moment, and then Scorpius pulled away, his pale cheeks flaring pink and eyes wide. “Shit, I-”

Before he could finish, Albus was pulling him back for another kiss. He didn’t know what he was doing, all he knew was that it felt right, that their bodies felt good pressed up together. Against his, Scorpius’s lips parted slightly, deepening the kiss, and Albus felt it surge through him.

His fingers hooked in Scorpius’s belt loops, pulling him closer, and the blonde boy’s fingers wound themselves in Albus’s thick hair. Something in the back of his mind was telling him this wasn’t right, but he didn’t care. He had never been so greedy, hungry for the way Scorpius’s lips moved against his own, he moaned ever so softly into Albus’s mouth.

And then they pulled away, and Scorpius was staggering backwards, confused. Albus still felt like he was in a daze. “Oh,” Scorpius whispered. He turned away, but Albus saw him bury his face in his hands. “Fuck,” he said under his breath. Albus could only stand there, trying to figure out what on earth had just happened. 

“I-” Scorpius said, still not looking him in the eye. “I should go,” he said quickly, making towards the door. Albus didn't say anything - he couldn’t - and watched Malfoy disappear back into the common room, gone as quick as a whisper.

Albus took a deep breath and leaned back against the ledge.

He could really use some more wine right about now.


	2. Chapter 2

That morning, Albus got out of bed as quick as possible, determined to avoid Scorpius. After hurriedly getting dressed, he noticed with relief that Malfoy was still asleep, and he let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding.

When he went downstairs for breakfast, Rose eyed him weirdly. “You seem off,” she said, as they sat down. Hogwarts had gotten rid of their ‘houses have to sit at their own tables’ a long time ago, so Rose often sat with him and his other Slytherin friends. “I don't seem off,” Albus shot back in protest. 

Jordan Blake nodded, sliding in next to him. “I’ve known you since you were in first year, Al, and you’re different this morning. What happened?”

Al rolled his eyes and helped himself to a hearty serving of sausages. “Nothing. I’m just tired from the party last night.”

Jordan narrowed his eyes. “I know for a fact that you weren’t at that party,” Jordan said as he cut into a stack of pancakes. “But you’re clearly not going to tell me so I’ll let it slide,” he said, grinning. “These pancakes remind me what love feels like,” Jordan said, and Albus just shook his head, laughing. 

He saw Scorpius walk into the hall a little later, and sure enough, he was acting strange too. Something about him was stiffer, less playful than he usually was. Albus sighed. He really had royally fucked up. 

Just then, Scorpius caught his eye from across the hall, and his cheeks turned pink. The other boy looked away awkwardly, and Albus hated the idea that he’d ruined what they had together. Not that it was much, but their petty rivalry was just really, really fun.  
\---  
Their last class that day was Herbology, and after packing up, Albus took a deep breath and caught up to the blonde boy in front of him. Everyone else had left, and the two of them were alone in the greenhouse. 

Scorpius turned around, eyes wide, and rubbed the back of his neck. “Er, Potter…” he began, but then trailed off when he couldn’t think of what to say. His face was also turning very, very red again.

Al gulped. “Look. We don’t have to talk about yesterday. We can just pretend it didn’t happen.” He bit his lip and looked at the other boy, who had lowered his gaze, deep in thought. He looked up after a moment and flashed his signature smirk.

“Pretend what didn’t happen?” Scorpius said, and Albus heaved a sigh of relief. That wasn’t so hard, was it?

“Oh, and we still need to do some research for our Potions project,” Scorpius said. “Are you free tomorrow after lunch?” 

Al nodded. “Yeah, I have a free-”

“Good, I’ll meet you in front of the library then.” 

…

Albus’s head was down, flipping aimlessly through a potions book. This stupid project was going to be the death of him. He wondered if they could even get it done, considering their schedules almost never lined up. He was about to reach for another book when he heard a soft grunt from in front of him. He looked up, and Scorpius was on his tippy toes, trying to reach a book on the top shelf. 

Albus laughed. “How long have you been trying to get that book?” he asked, amused, and Scorpius turned to glare at him. “Shut up, I can do it.”

“Sure you can,” Albus said. He got up and stepped towards the shelf, standing in front of Scorpius and plucking out the book with ease. He smiled mockingly at Scorpius, then noticed that they were way too close again, their lips only centimetres apart, their bodies closer than should be normal. He wanted to step back and just hand him the book, he really did, but somehow he couldn’t bring himself to. 

He didn’t know who initiated it, but their lips were together again, and Albus was pushing Scorpius up against the shelf, letting his hands trail down to the other boy’s hips. Scorpius gasped slightly and leaned upwards into the kiss, his hands wrapped tight around Albus’s neck, his fingers curling into the tiny dark hairs at his nape. 

Slowly, Albus bucked his hips and ground their pelvises together. Scorpius groaned slightly into his mouth, urging him to keep doing it. He could feel the tent between Scorpius’s legs growing, and it only made him harder.

Somehow, Scorpius’s hands had found their way down to Albus’s crotch, and they hovered there as if waiting for permission. Albus arched his groin forward, burying his face in Scorpius’s neck. “Fuck, please,” he whimpered, and Scorpius’s slender hands made quick work of Albus’s trousers, swiftly unzipping them and slipping his hands inside to palm Albus’s hard member.

He groaned, bucking into Scorpius’s touch and biting softly at his neck, which only spurred the other boy on, and Scorpius was pumping quicker and harder now, groaning at the way Albus nibbled on his neck. 

“Shit, Malfoy I-” and then Albus was coming, his hips jerking. 

“God,” Scorpius whispered, and Albus noticed he was touching himself through his trousers now. He sank to his knees in front of Scorpius. The other boy’s eyes widened as Albus undid his trousers and pushed them down far enough to pull his cock out. “Potter-” Scorpius began, but it dissolved into a moan as Albus took him in his mouth. 

Scorpius head fell back, his mouth making gorgeous sounds as Albus swirled his tongue teasingly around Scorpius, eliciting whimpers. He could hear Scorpius moan ‘Albus’ under his breath desperately, and his own name had never sounded so good in someone else’s mouth. Scorpius pushed his hips forward, and Albus was all too eager to take in more of him, hollowing his cheeks and letting Scorpius’s tip graze the bottom of his hot, wet throat.  
With a shiver and a final moan of his name, he orgasmed, spilling into Albus’s mouth. Albus pulled away, swallowing hard, and Scorpius leaned his head back into the bookshelf, his chest rising and falling rapidly. Their eyes locked and Scorpius’s face was flushed, his pupils blown out. Why had Albus never noticed how good he looked?

Albus stood up, doing up his trousers again, and leaned against the desk as Scorpius hastily did the same. They didn’t say anything for a moment before Scorpius broke the silence with ‘Oh.”

This was so ridiculous he couldn’t believe it was real. Albus shook his head and laughed mirthlessly. “So much for ‘we were drunk’, huh?” he said, trying to process what had just happened. 

Scorpius pursed his lips, then stepped towards the table. “Okay. Hear me out.” Albus’s head perked up in surprise. “I know what you’re going to say- that it was a heat of the moment thing, that it’s never going to happen again, that we should pretend like it didn’t even happen.” Scorpius took another step, resting his hands on the table beside Albus’s hips. “But we both know that’s not true,” he said, his voice quiet now. “We both know that was fucking amazing.”

Albus’s breath quickened again. “And what about it?” He was right, he couldn’t deny how good those last few moments were. 

“We keep doing it.”

“What? Are you insane?”

“Relax, Potter,” Albus bristled slightly at that. He loved the way ‘Albus’ sounded in Scorpius’s voice, but he couldn’t say anything about it, of course. “It doesn’t have to mean anything. It’s just us getting off with each other.”

Albus narrowed his eyes. “So you mean like a no strings attached, friends with benefits kind of agreement?” 

Scorpius nodded. “Exactly, no strings. And it only lasts up until the end of this project, and after that, we can go our separate ways, and never bring this up again.”

Strangely enough, Albus was actually warming to the idea. “Okay. And no one ever finds out about it.” 

“Agreed.” Scorpius nodded, and then he cast a quick cleaning charm. “Well, if you don’t mind me, I kind of just missed Charms, so, uh, I should probably go.” he picked up his bag and packed up his stuff, then headed towards the library exit. He stopped a couple of steps away, then turned back. 

“One more thing. No feelings.” Scorpius said. “We don’t talk about ourselves our lives at all, because that leads to feelings, and feelings lead to relationships, and I don’t do relationships.”

Albus chuckled. “I get it, Malfoy.”

Scorpius rolled his eyes and left the library, and Albus was left sitting there, still reeling.   
But he felt good, for some reason. Maybe these two months wouldn’t be as bad as he thought.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update! I've been working on this chapter for a while and it's longer than usual but so so worth it! I hope you guys enjoy :)

Albus Potter was feeling very good about things as of late. I mean, why would he be complaining? Their project was coming along better than he had expected, plus, he had some added… er, benefits with it that he was fairly pleased about.

It was a Saturday morning, and he was standing outside the library with the largest mug of coffee he had managed to bribe from the house-elves. Usually, he’d hate to be awake this early, but this was one of the only times they were both free to work on their assignment. 

Out of the corner of his eye, he watched a slow figure trudge towards the library entrance. He had to chuckle. Scorpius Malfoy with bags under his eyes and a less than perfect posture was a sight to be seen. 

“Didn’t know I’d be working with a zombie today,” Al quipped, and Malfoy shot him a glare.

“Shut it. I’m running on two hours of sleep and I’m not in the mood for your witty banter.”

Albus only laughed and led him into the library, waving a cheerful greeting to Madam Pince. The elderly librarian cast a concerned glance at Scorpius’s dead expression, then went back to her filing.

Al made sure to choose a quiet, hidden nook of the library, grabbing a few reference books on the way. Scorpius had insisted they do their project on Severus Snape, much to Al’s dismay. As he said, he’d heard enough about that man from his dad. Still, Scorpius had a way of getting what he wanted with that large innocent look in his eyes. On that note, Scorpius Malfoy did have strangely pretty eyes and-

“Hurry up,” Scorpius groaned from the table in front of him. “I wanna go back to bed,”

Al sighed and sat down next to him. He had a feeling sleepy Scorpius would not be a very friendly one. He opened his bag and opened the first book. ‘The Half-Blood Prince: The Life of Severus Snape’ it was called, and Al was pretty sure he’d read it a hundred times by now. There wasn’t a lot of information about a wizard who’d only died twenty-five years ago, understandably, but this book was boring him to death by now.

He glanced over at Scorpius who was jotting down some notes. Or, at least, he was supposed to be. Instead, he was staring blankly at his notebook. Albus had to let out a chuckle. “You’re not really a morning person, are you, Malfoy?” 

“Good observation,” Scorpius snapped.

Albus smiled. “I could think of something that could, er, help you ease yourself,” he said, resting his hand on Scorpius’s thigh. The other boy quirked an eyebrow.

“Okay, Potter, that’s really not going to-” Scorpius cut off with a sharp breath as Al cupped his groin and squeezed slightly. 

“What was that you were saying?” Albus said innocently.

“Shut up and touch me,” Scorpius managed through heavy breaths, leaning back in his chair.

Al laughed and deftly undid Scorpius’s trousers, slipping his hands down the boy’s boxers and pulling out his already hard member. He wrapped his hand around it, and slowly but surely stroked it, pumping his hand up and down. His thumb swiped over the head, making Scorpius gasp slightly.

He quickened his pace then, stroking faster and faster until Scorpius was biting his lip and muttering curses under his breath. “Albus-” he whined, his hips jerking and releasing into Al’s palm. 

Al reached for his wand and cast a cleaning charm, but he found himself staring at Scorpius; with his pink face and mussed up hair, he looked kind of beautiful in this early morning light. He mentally cursed himself for that. He wasn’t supposed to be looking at him that way. Because this still meant nothing.

Malfoy zipped up his pants and composed himself. “God, you don’t know what you do to me.”

Albus’s stomach somersaulted.

“You’re welcome, by the way,” he smirked, ignoring it.

Scorpius shook his head. “Enough distractions, we really need to work on this,” he said, finally picking up the quill. Al went back to his book, satisfied.

Scorpius broke their comfortable silence a few moments later, looking up from his notes. “You know, I never figured out how it started. The whole rivalry between us, I mean,”

Albus furrowed his brow. “I thought it was because you hated me,”  
Malfoy shook his head. “What do you mean?” he said. “I didn’t hate you. I just-” He chewed his lip thoughtfully. “I guess it never came to my mind to befriend you. Back then, I didn’t know anything about you, except that your name was Albus Potter. And everything I’d been told about you-” 

Scorpius trailed off, but Al knew. It was no secret that their parents weren’t the biggest fans of each other (understatement of the century) but he found himself thinking about what it would be like if none of that had happened; if the two of them were blank slates with no historical familial feud to think about. 

“We could have been friends, you know,” he said after a while. “We’re more alike than I’ve realized.”

Scorpius rested his chin on his hand. “You’re right, actually,” he said, his lip curling upwards. “You’re probably the only person who knows how annoying it is to be called by your father’s name.”

Al groaned. “Don’t get me started,” he said, throwing his head back. “I can’t go a single day without hearing ‘you look so much like your father!’”

“Lucky for me, it’s more like ‘I’m so glad you’re NOT like your father,” Scorpius said, “It’s like they expect me to sprout a Dark Mark and Avada Kedavra them at any moment,” 

Al laughed, watching the other boy smile and lower his head, going back to his work. Scorpius had a soft expression, unguarded and unfearful of what anyone would think. It was a good look on him, Al decided. There was something about his gentle smile that made Al’s heartbeat ever so faster.

He took a deep breath and returned to his work. No more of those thoughts.

\---

Rose was getting frustratingly close to figuring out what was going on with Al, and he didn’t know how much longer he could hide it. 

They were walking back from Transfiguration, and his cousin was practically skipping along beside him, her red curls bouncing as she tried to pry it out of him. “Are you dating someone?” she said, tilting her head. “You’ve been oddly cheerful as of late,” she said thoughtfully.

Al shook his head. “I’m telling you, nothing’s up,” he said, shoving his hands in his pockets and shrugging, “You’re just imagining it.” 

Rose crossed her arms. “Sweet little Al,” she said, being only two months older than him. “I know exactly what I’m talking about, and I’ll get it out of you,” she narrowed her eyes, then let out a laugh. “I’ve got Ancient Runes though, so we can do your interrogation later,” she said, turning around the corner and slipping into the classroom right as Professor Hugh turned the corner. He raised an eyebrow.

Al rubbed the back of his neck and headed toward the Slytherin common room. Rose was right, she knew him too well, and sooner or later, he would accidentally spill. It didn’t matter anyway, because the whole arrangement-

His thoughts were interrupted when a hand tightened around his wrist and pulled him towards the wall. “Hi,” Scorpius grinned up at him, pulling him close for a kiss. Al all but melted into his kiss, letting Scorpius’s arms wrap around his neck. When he pulled away, Scorpius’s blue eyes were wide, his iris just a ring of blue around his pupils. 

“Someone’s gonna see us,” he hissed, and Scorpius cocked his head.

“Everyone’s in class,” Scorp said, very matter-of-factly, but he stepped away from the wall, pulling Al into the broom closet nearby. When the door shut, Scorpius’s lips met his again. Their bodies close and heated at that moment. His hands wrapped around Scorp’s waist, fingers slipping under his shirt. 

Scorpius pushed him up against the wall of the closet, his kisses full of a passionate fervour as his kisses trailed along Al’s jaw. 

“What’s up with you today?” Al said, amused yet pleasantly surprised with this thirsty side of Malfoy. 

“I’ve been thinking about y-” he said, pulling away for a moment. “About this,” he said quickly, dropping his gaze. “And how I never paid you back for this morning,” his lips were back on Al’s skin, biting softly at his neck. Al let out a sigh, tightening his grip on Scorpius’s waist. He could stay in this closet forever.

Scorpius slid his hand downwards, slipping into Al’s trousers and rubbing his erection. Albus sighed and leaned into his touch, letting him stroke faster and faster. They were doing this so often now that Scorp knew exactly how he liked it. He didn’t want to think about how it would be by December. They were already one month in by now, and-

He shut his eyes. He really did not need to be thinking about this when Scorpius was right here, wanking him off. Without warning, he let out a moan and released into his palm. Scorpius smirked. “That was quick, even for you, Potter,”

“Fuck you,” Al said, breathless.   
“Maybe I will some time,” Scorp said, leaning down to pick up the satchel he’d dropped when they’d entered.

“Who said you’d be doing the fucking?” Al said playfully, and the other boy shook his head.

“We’ll just see,” he said, slipping out of the closet after fixing his hair and straightening his tie. 

Al leaned back against the wall, still reeling. Why was he like this? They’d done this so many times, but he couldn’t stop thinking about what Scorpius had said. 

‘I was thinking about you,”

Was he? Did Scorpius think about him the way Al did? Not that he thought about Malfoy that much. Just when he was horny. Or bored. Or lonely. Or when he saw that smile of his with the flashing white teeth. Or when he was sad. Or anytime, really. So not that much at all, as anyone could tell.

He sighed and picked up his bag, fixing himself up before leaving as well. 

\---  
Later, in the Slytherin common room, he saw Rose enter, flustered and wide-eyed. He was sitting with Scorpius on one of the sofas, talking about their project, when she came in. 

“Ro?” Al said, confused. He stood up and headed towards the entrance. “How’d you even get down here?”

“Unimportant,” she said, grinning. “Because I finally know what’s up with you.” 

Al raised an eyebrow, but his heart was pounding. “You don’t know-”

She shook her head. “You’re dating Scorpius Malfoy.”


	4. Chapter 4

“You’re dating Scorpius Malfoy.”

Al’s eyes widened. He turned around to make sure Scorp hadn’t heard from where he was curled up on the sofa, and turned back to Rose, glowering.

“What? No! Are you insane?” he spluttered, hoping the nervousness in his voice wouldn’t show through. He knew Rose would find out sooner or later, but not so soon, and not like this. 

She put her hands on her hips. “Well, I saw the two of you-”

Al placed a hand over her mouth, muffling her words before she could finish. “Merlin, Rose, you’re so goddamn loud,” he took another nervous glance around. “We can’t talk about this here.” He dropped his hand, casting her a look that said _‘if you speak again I will personally knock you out’._

He walked back to where Scorpius was sitting, trying to think of a good explanation to the confused look on his face. “Look, I’ll be right back, don’t go anywhere,” he said quickly. 

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Scorp drawled sarcastically. “Is Rose alright? She looks... frustrated.” They both turned to where Rose was standing; red curls in disarray and nose screwed up and pink. For such a short girl she did seem to be a bubbling pot of impatience. 

“She’ll be fine,” Al said, before getting back to Rose’s side. He pulled her outside of the common room into one of the little corners that folded into the hallway. There didn’t seem to be anyone around. 

“When are you going to admit I got it right, little cuz?” she said, looking very pleased with herself. 

Al rolled his eyes. “You got nothing right. We’re not together, Rose. That’s the last person I’d even dream of dating.”

Rose narrowed her eyes. “So do you want to explain how I saw you two snogging outside of the runes classroom?” she said innocently. Al’s heart did a little leap. There’s no way. 

He ran a hand through his hair. “Wh-what are you-”

Rose shook her head. “Al, I saw it. You don’t need to defend yourself. It’s not like I’m judging you for it.”

“We’re not together anyway,” Al said quietly. Rose quirked an eyebrow, beckoning him to explain. “We’re just messing around, is all. It’s not a real relationship.”

“Oh, fuck that,” Rose said, her brow furrowing. “You don’t mean to tell me you don’t have feelings for him?”

Albus swallowed hard, his mind racing. “Of course not.” He said, but his voice had the least bit of certainty in it.

Rose caught her lip between her teeth. “Sure, tell yourself whatever you want to,” she said, shrugging. “I’m just saying, these kinds of things never work out. The whole friends with benefits thingamabob. One of them catches feelings, the other one doesn’t reciprocate, it turns into this whole mess. It all gets fucked up.”

“Well, that’s not going to happen with us,” Albus said, his voice rising. “We have an arrangement, it’s all going to work out.” 

Rose looked unconvinced. “Al, I just want the best for you.” 

“Then stop fucking sticking your nose into my business, Rose! I know what I’m doing,” he all but yelled. “I don’t need you to follow me around every single second of the day,” He stepped out of the little corner. He caught a glimpse of the hurt registered on Rose’s face, but he stormed off all the same. She knew nothing about them. 

When he got back to the common room, his anger must have been evident on his face because Scorpius looked slightly concerned. The boy looked up from the potions book he was reading. “Shit, what went down out there?” he said, trying and failing to mask the genuine worry in his voice.

Al sat down next to him with a huff. “Just a good old-fashioned family argument,” he said, laughing, but anyone could tell there wasn’t a hint of humour in it. He could feel the guilt creeping upon him, and he was beginning to regret what he had just said.

He looked down as a hand clasped his own, resting on the sofa. Scorpius’s hand gave a little comforting squeeze, but when he looked up, Scorp himself had his eyes glued to his book. Al glanced down again, to where their fingers were intertwined and he could feel the other boy’s warmth flood his own body. Al’s heart was pounding again, echoing in his ears over the silence in the common room. 

\---

Al hadn’t talked to Scorpius all day.

It was their last Hogsmeade weekend before winter break and Al felt empty. The end of the project was looming but he was doing everything he could do to not think about it. That included avoiding Scorpius. 

He couldn’t get what Rose said out of his head. And that moment in the common room… he bit his lip. It meant nothing, right? That’s what he’d been telling himself ever since this whole ordeal started, maybe even before. There was no way there could be anything between them. He exhaled, watching his breath cloud up in the chilly December air. He glimpsed Scorpius in front of him and ducked his head so the boy wouldn’t notice. 

Rose was off with her Gryffindor friends and James had detention again (unsurprising), so he thought he’d try and find Jordan. Better than standing out there in the cold with no one. He could buy presents, he supposed, but quite frankly, he was broke. He also couldn’t stop casting furtive glances at Scorpius. He hoped Malfoy couldn’t tell that something was up.

He took a deep breath and decided to head to the Three Broomsticks; in an attempt to drink away his troubles with some good old butterbeer. 

It wasn’t a long walk, just down a little alleyway. But, sure enough, Scorpius was waiting there for him, his arms crossed against his chest. Albus mentally cursed himself. 

“What, are you following me or something?” 

Scorpius smirked, but he could tell something was off. “Is there a reason you’re avoiding me, Albus?”

Al’s heart did a little jump. Why did he love it so much when Scorpius said his name like that? He brushed it off. “Why would you think I’m avoiding you?”

“I don’t know, maybe it’s because you saw me and ran the other way like your life depended on it this morning?” He saw Scorpius’s eyes soften, his expression more vulnerable than he’d ever seen it. “Did I do something wrong?” he said softly. 

“Well, maybe you’re just too goddamn clingy!”

“Al-” Scorpius began, and the hurt was clear in his cornflower-blue eyes. 

“Malfoy, I don’t give a shit about you unless we’re getting off together,” he said, his voice tightening. “Isn’t that what you wanted anyway?” 

In an instant, Scorpius’s entire expression hardened. The sadness in his eyes glossed over to indifference and his lips pressed into a firm line. “You’re right,” he said slowly. “Yeah, I never should have expected anything more.” 

Albus wanted to strangle himself. Why couldn’t he keep his dumb mouth shut? And Scorpius’s voice did things to him that he couldn’t even imagine. 

Scorpius grabbed Al’s shirt in his fist and yanked him forward, pressing his lips against him hard. But it wasn’t like before, This was loveless, so fiery he could feel the burning hatred as Scorpius’s tongue slipped into his mouth. Yet so cold at the same time. 

And then the other boy pulled away, cheeks blazing and eyes glimmering with tears. Al should have said something. He knew he should have. But he was looking at this boy’s face and he couldn’t think of the right words, because all his mind was telling him was  _ ‘I was wrong. I was stupid. I love you.’ _

But he couldn’t say any of that. 

“I guess I’ll catch you later, Potter,” he said nonchalantly, and he left, turning away before Al could see the tears streaming down his cheeks. 

Al tightened his fists, feeling the tears coming. Rose was right. This is what you would call truly fucking up. 

  
  
  
  
  
  


  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 4! This one was much shorter than usual and had a healthy serving of angst but there are good things coming, so don't worry! Thank you so much for all the comments too! I appreciate all of your love <3


	5. Chapter 5

Albus was standing in the Gryffindor common room, feeling extremely out of place. The room was so obnoxiously red and gold that it made him want to gag. His eyes scanned the sea of Gryffindors until he spotted the familiar mop of messy black hair.

He headed towards the little circle of beanbags, where his brother had his arm around a girl. Different from the one he’d seen last week. “Jamie,” he began, and James looked up. 

“Well, if it isn’t little Albus,” he said, grinning ear to ear. “Never thought you’d step foot into the enemy’s lair.”

“Piss off. I need to talk to Rose.”

“So, why are you talking to me, then?”

“Well, she won’t exactly talk to me. So I need you to get her for me.

James grinned. “Ah, you kids and your petty little fights.”

“Jamie, you’re literally only a year older than me.” 

“And a year wiser,” He disentangled himself from the girl he was sitting with begrudgingly and bounded up the stairs. Rose emerged, not long after, with the coldest expression he’d seen on her pale little face. 

“Rose, he began, but she stopped him. 

“Outside,” she snapped, “We’re doing this outside.” He heard James’ amused laughter from the corner and rolled his eyes. Rose simply flipped him off and headed outside, waiting for Al to follow her. 

“I’m sorry,” Albus said as soon as they stepped outside. “For yelling at you.”

“You should be,” Rose said, crossing her arms. But her expression had softened slightly, and Al was feeling hopeful. 

“I know you were just trying to help, but I’m kind of an asshole, if you haven’t noticed.”

“You? An asshole? I wouldn’t have guessed.” Rose finally smiled. “It’s alright, Al. I guess true love just does things to people.”

Albus rolled his eyes. “Yeah, you can forget about that whole thing.”

Rose perked up. “What?”

“I might have, er, messed up in that department. Like, big time.”

His cousin’s large brown eyes widened. “No fucking way,” she said, incredulous. “You did not just ruin the best thing you’ve had in ages.”

Al ran a hand through his hair. “It’s what I do best.”

“And you know what I do best,” Rose grabbed his arm and marched them outside. “Help you fix your fuck ups.”

\---

It was 6 AM, three days before Winter Break. A week since the incident. They’d handed in their project, completed very begrudgingly and separately. They didn’t interact otherwise, and everytime Al looked at the boy his mind was a whirlwind.

Al woke up to the beams of the rising sun filtering in through their dormitory window; when he looked outside,the world was painted white with snow. And sure enough, Scorpius’s bed was empty. He slowly clambered out of bed, being sure not to make any noise. It was now or never.

Shrouded in the invisibility cloak he nicked from James, he made his way through the castle, deftly avoiding Flich. That cat of his was a fucking menace, by the way. He arrived at the steps of the Astronomy Tower, and took a deep breath. Then he started upwards.

When he got to the top, the sky was gorgeous. Soft pink hues smudged into the yellow morning light, with the soft wisps of clouds accenting the scenery in front of him. And there, not far ahead of him, looking out over the railing, was the boy he was here for.

Al cleared his throat.

Scorpius turned around, surprise evident on his face. 

“What are you doing here?” he said stonily. “A little early for us to get off, I’d think,” he said. 

Al’s heart sank. “That’s not why I’m here,” he said softly. He knew Scorp had every right to hate him right about now, and he didn’t blame him. Al spent the days after his outburst thoroughly despising himself. 

“Oh?” Scorpius shot back. “How’d you even find me, Potter?” That last word dripped with venom, Al could almost taste it.

Al stepped forward. “You told me once that you come up here on the first snowfall of the year,” he said, nearly whispering as if it would break the fragility of the moment. “You said it made you feel peaceful.”

Scorpius pursed his lips. “Wow,”he said. “I forgot I told you that,” he said sourly. He shoved his hands in the pockets of his jacket. “Well, spit it out then. Why are you here?” 

Albus swallowed. He walked towards the ledge, standing next to Scorpius and looking out over the Hogwarts grounds. It was breathtaking. A blanket of snow covered the grass and the lake had frozen over to an icy sheen. He peered upwards, to where snowflakes fluttered gently from the pale blue sky. 

“This is like that first day,” Albus mused. Then he cleared his throat. “Look, I fucked up. I shouldn’t have-”

Scorpius was already shaking his head. “Let me stop you,” he said. “I might have been mad at you at first for what you said, but I thought about it. And, you were right.” He lowered his gaze, shifting his feet in place. “I did get weirdly clingy. It’s what I do.”

Al’s heart was in his throat. He wasn’t sure if he was hearing this right. “You’re wrong,” he said quietly. The other boy looked up at him,confused. 

“I freaked out that day at Hogsmeade,” Al said, his throat tight. “I freaked out because I was scared of how much I liked you. I thought I could make it go away, or something. I wasn’t supposed to. You were Scorpius Malfoy, of all people.

  
  


“I didn’t know what was happening , and what the way I felt about you meant,” he said, his gaze locked on the other boy now. “But I did know that I wanted to talk to you for hours. I wanted to hold your hand in public. I wanted to be more than whatever we were before. Because, shit, Scorpius you do make me hard, but you also make me so fucking weak.” 

“Albus,” Scorpius said, his eyes wide. 

“So I’m sorry,” Al said. “For everything.”

And then Scorpius was kissing him. His lips were soft like feather touch, his fingers delicate on Al’s chest. They broke apart and Scorpius was staring at him, bright-eyed and breathless. 

“So I’m forgiven?” Al said hopefully.

“You’re still a dick, Albus,” Scorpius said lightly. “But I’d say I hate you slightly less now.”

“Slightly less? That’s an improvement, at least?”

Scorpius only laughed. “I can’t believe I like you, Albus,” he said, “I can’t believe you came all the way up here to profess your undying love for me.” he was smirking now, the corners of his mouth turned up smugly. 

“You’re never going to let me live that down, are you?” Al said. 

“Not a chance.” 

Albus smiled. He felt oddly light standing here, looking at Scorpius. The other boy was looking out over the edge of the tower, an expression of bliss across his face.  _ I like you, Albus.  _ That’s what he had said, and Albus replayed the moment in his head a million times.

“Look, Albus,” he said finally. Al snapped out of his daze, meeting the other boy’s eyes. “I don’t know what I’m doing most of the time. I suck at relationships. And I don’t know what we are now. What  _ this  _ is.” Scorpius took a deep breath. “How we’re going to go back after this. Who we’re going to tell. What we’re even going to tell them.”

Al’s hand reached up and cupped Scorpius’s jaw ever so lightly. His hand seemed to have moved of his own accord. “I guess we’ll figure all of that out as we go,” Al whispered. Their faces were close, only inches apart. He could feel Scorpius’s breathing, the way his chest rose and fell. The way he looked into his eyes. 

Scorpius nodded with a gentle smile, some of his anxiety seemingly dissipated. “I guess we will.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> and that's a wrap! thank you for reading!! i know this was a super short fic but look forward to two more scorbus fics coming soon! i hope you guys liked it :) let me know what you thought about the entire thingg


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